The Indweller

Human beings crave connection to something beyond the physical world. The data shows that the majority of people are spiritually curious; many have recently looked at a horoscope, visited a palm reader, or even played with Ouija boards. There is an ongoing cultural obsession with paranormal activity. We are simply not okay with things just being material. We long for something more; we try a variety of ways to connect with something outside ourselves in hopes of finding an otherworldly experience.

But until we put our faith in Christ and experience the true indwelling of the Holy Spirit, that search for spirituality will always come up empty. Many of these alternative paths lead into dark and demonic places. We need a spirituality that is pure, holy, and genuinely good for us.

In His final message to His disciples, Jesus prepares them for His departure by promising something better than His physical presence next to them. He promises His active presence living inside of them. This shifts the entire paradigm of how we interact with the divine. What does it mean to have God live inside us? What should we actually expect in our day-to-day life?

Vital and Verifiable

Jesus describes us apart from God's presence as orphans. An orphan is lost, vulnerable, and left without protection or provision. We often think we are free, powerful, and independent on our own; God tells us that without Him, we are completely desperate. God's presence and care are vital; they are essential and necessary for our very survival. Jesus does not just offer help from a distance at a minimal cost to Himself. He gives His whole self to help us from the closest possible proximity.

This spiritual experience is also firmly anchored in reality. Jesus grounds His promise in His resurrection, telling the disciples they will see Him alive. Our spiritual connection to God is not based on subjective feelings, random vibes, or well wishes. It is built on historical facts; Jesus lived, died, rose again, and was seen by over five hundred eyewitnesses.

Jesus's resurrection appearance guarantees His daily presence.

Practical and Spiritual

We often obsess over mystical experiences while completely neglecting the practical obedience Jesus asked for. We want the unexplainable reality, but we dismiss the tangible and doable things that allow us to experience His presence. Notice that the manifestation of Jesus is directly attached to keeping His commands. Having God's commands is completely different from actually keeping them. If a child hears an instruction to clean their room but fails to do it, they did not truly listen. The same is true in our walk with God; hearing a sermon means nothing if we do not apply it to our actual lives.

Obedience is the greatest form of understanding. We do not earn God's love by keeping His commands, because God initiated the relationship and His love is the cause of our love. But our obedience remains the undeniable evidence of our love. If there is no evidence, there is no reality. We have been conditioned to seek the manifestation of God's presence in ecstatic worship gatherings, expecting to coast into a spiritual high with no real effort. But God has promised the consistent manifestation of His presence in our ordinary, everyday acts of obedience. We must choose to fight sin, practice self-control, and be relentlessly generous with our resources. If we are faithful in the streets of our daily lives, God will be faithful in the sanctuary.

Experiencing God's presence isn't a matter of vibes, but verifiable steps.

Temporal and Eternal

God's presence in our lives is both a temporal reality right now and an eternal promise. Jesus assures His followers that while He is going away to prepare a place for them in heaven, He and the Father will also come make their home in us right now. His home is in our hearts now, and our hearts will be in His home forever. From the Garden of Eden to the Old Testament tabernacle, God has always desired to dwell directly with His people. This divine pursuit reaches its climax when Jesus, the Son of God, came to earth and tabernacled among us.